Tobacco is a serious problem in the society specialy muslims. It kills 10,000 people everyday around the world. Muslim countries are the highest consumers of tobbaco. A cigarette contains 2-3 thousand chemicals & It has serious health hazards like lung cancer, oral cancer,gangarene disease,premature heart attack,hair loss,aging skin,weight loss & sexual disfunctioning in men and women.It is a blunder for a women to smoke as this can effect her reproduction capabilities and harm the child after birth.
In India alone there are 250 million tobacco addicts,2500 die everyday because of tobacco and 5,500 children start using tobacco everyday.
Islam clearly condemns the use of tobbaco in any form. I had an opportunity to research on the subject in my post graduation, My humble appeal to muslim friends is "let us contribute to control this poison" as Allah says in the Quran "WHOSEVER SAVETH A LIFE OF ONE IT SHALL BE AS IF HE HAS SAVETH THE LIFE OF ENTIRE MANKIND" (CH:41,V:46).

Tobacco is a serious problem in the society specialy muslims. It kills 10,000 people everyday around the world. Muslim countries are the highest consumers of tobbaco. A cigarette contains 2-3 thousand chemicals & It has serious health hazards like lung cancer, oral cancer,gangarene disease,premature heart attack,hair loss,aging skin,weight loss & sexual disfunctioning in men and women.It is a blunder for a women to smoke as this can effect her reproduction capabilities and harm the child after birth. In India alone there are 250 million tobacco addicts,2500 die everyday because of tobacco and 5,500 children start using tobacco everyday. Islam clearly condemns the use of tobbaco in any form. I had an opportunity to research on the subject in my post graduation, My humble appeal to muslim friends is "let us contribute to control this poison" as Allah says in the Quran "WHOSEVER SAVETH A LIFE OF ONE IT SHALL BE AS IF HE HAS SAVETH THE LIFE OF ENTIRE MANKIND" (CH:41,V:46).

Ruling from the Holy Quran
"0 ye who believe! Intoxicants and gambling are an abomination of Satan's handiwork. Eschew such abominations that ye may prosper." - Surah Al Ma'idah, 5:93
The word intoxicant has three meanings (6):
(1) To induce, especially the effect of ingested alcohol.
(2) To stimulate or excite.
(3) To poison.
The latter two meanings are very valid and applicable to nicotine.
Smoking is nothing but a form of slow suicide.

Ruling from the Holy Quran "0 ye who believe! Intoxicants and gambling are an abomination of Satan's handiwork. Eschew such abominations that ye may prosper." - Surah Al Ma'idah, 5:93 The word intoxicant has three meanings (6): (1) To induce, especially the effect of ingested alcohol. (2) To stimulate or excite. (3) To poison. The latter two meanings are very valid and applicable to nicotine. Smoking is nothing but a form of slow suicide.

How can tobacco be haram?
When tobacco was introduced in Islamic countries and Muslims began smoking, they, in fulfilment of their religious duty, started to examine the sharia ruling on smoking.
One group held smoking to be haram on the basis of the fact that it was harmful to the body, causing languor and weakness and drugging the body in a way that affected physical sensations, movement and energy. This group of scholars was guided by the authentic saying of the Prophet PBUH in which he prohibited all things causing intoxication and languor.
A second group based their views on the general harm caused by tobacco to its smokers. They said that the Islamic sharia is founded on the admissibility of everything useful and the prohibition of all harmful things. If usefulness and harm were combined in one thing, but the harm was greater than the use, the ruling was prohibition. This principle has been established by God in prohibiting drinking: They ask you concerning drinking and gambling, say: in them is great sin and some profit for men, but the sin is greater than the profit (2:219).
Others said that it was reprehensible, thus placing it in a category less than haram(1). These, too, were divided as to the basis for their ruling. One group considered that the harm caused by smoking was not so great as to make it haram, while another group based their views on the fact that smoking produced a bad and repulsive odour (2).
Still others allowed smoking and ruled that it was permissible on the basis of the general principle that all things are originally permissible unless otherwise prohibited. One group argued that the fact that tobacco caused harm or languor was not proven, in general, meaning that it could not be ruled as haram or reprehensible for all people. If, however, it was proven to be harmful to one smoker, or was likely to cause harm to one smoker, then it may be prohibited for that person, but not for others who were not harmed by it. Smoking, to them, was like anything that is permissible in general but forbidden to a person harmed by it, such as in the case of permissible food or beverages that may be banned during an illness. A group of those scholars who allowed smoking, however, added that it was preferable to avoid smoking.
Other scholars said that the five rulings (of fiqh) were applicable to smoking:
Smoking is imperative if it is indispensable for balance and ability to perform physical and mental duties, which could be true in some cases;
It is recommendable, or desirable, if it produces greater balance and greater ability to work;
It is permissible if the smoker remains unaffected, whether he/ she smokes or not;
It is reprehensible if the harm caused is slight or if it is likely to cause harm;
And it is impermissible (haram) if harm has actually occured or if severe harm has been ascertained to occur.
The view that smoking is permissible has prevailed in Islamic countries and it has become common to permit smoking, both by ruling and by example. Many scholars and pious people smoke, finding no religious embarrassment in smoking. The ruling that smoking is forbidden or reprehensible has become limited to persons who were harmed physically or financially by smoking .
However, accurate medical and experimental tests have settled the matter(3) confirming that smoking is generally harmful. Many governments have responded to such conclusions and have taken steps to combat smoking, either by raising prices to reduce access to it or by banning smoking in public places, as Egypt has done recently in response to the efforts exerted by the former chairman of the Medical Association, Dr Hamdy al-Sayed. Governments are also forcing tobacco producers to clearly state on their products the health hazards of smoking, so that a smoker may reconsider smoking, and urge others to abstain from it, and, by so doing, become a good example in social reform for which he would be rewarded by God. Such a person will also receive, according to the Prophet PBUH, the reward for a good action undertaken by those who follow his example, without minimizing their own reward.
Now that medical specialists have settled the matter, the religious ruling on smoking ranges from haram to reprehensible, bordering on haram for those who start smoking.

How can tobacco be haram? When tobacco was introduced in Islamic countries and Muslims began smoking, they, in fulfilment of their religious duty, started to examine the sharia ruling on smoking. One group held smoking to be haram on the basis of the fact that it was harmful to the body, causing languor and weakness and drugging the body in a way that affected physical sensations, movement and energy. This group of scholars was guided by the authentic saying of the Prophet PBUH in which he prohibited all things causing intoxication and languor. A second group based their views on the general harm caused by tobacco to its smokers. They said that the Islamic sharia is founded on the admissibility of everything useful and the prohibition of all harmful things. If usefulness and harm were combined in one thing, but the harm was greater than the use, the ruling was prohibition. This principle has been established by God in prohibiting drinking: They ask you concerning drinking and gambling, say: in them is great sin and some profit for men, but the sin is greater than the profit (2:219). Others said that it was reprehensible, thus placing it in a category less than haram(1). These, too, were divided as to the basis for their ruling. One group considered that the harm caused by smoking was not so great as to make it haram, while another group based their views on the fact that smoking produced a bad and repulsive odour (2). Still others allowed smoking and ruled that it was permissible on the basis of the general principle that all things are originally permissible unless otherwise prohibited. One group argued that the fact that tobacco caused harm or languor was not proven, in general, meaning that it could not be ruled as haram or reprehensible for all people. If, however, it was proven to be harmful to one smoker, or was likely to cause harm to one smoker, then it may be prohibited for that person, but not for others who were not harmed by it. Smoking, to them, was like anything that is permissible in general but forbidden to a person harmed by it, such as in the case of permissible food or beverages that may be banned during an illness. A group of those scholars who allowed smoking, however, added that it was preferable to avoid smoking. Other scholars said that the five rulings (of fiqh) were applicable to smoking: Smoking is imperative if it is indispensable for balance and ability to perform physical and mental duties, which could be true in some cases; It is recommendable, or desirable, if it produces greater balance and greater ability to work; It is permissible if the smoker remains unaffected, whether he/ she smokes or not; It is reprehensible if the harm caused is slight or if it is likely to cause harm; And it is impermissible (haram) if harm has actually occured or if severe harm has been ascertained to occur. The view that smoking is permissible has prevailed in Islamic countries and it has become common to permit smoking, both by ruling and by example. Many scholars and pious people smoke, finding no religious embarrassment in smoking. The ruling that smoking is forbidden or reprehensible has become limited to persons who were harmed physically or financially by smoking . However, accurate medical and experimental tests have settled the matter(3) confirming that smoking is generally harmful. Many governments have responded to such conclusions and have taken steps to combat smoking, either by raising prices to reduce access to it or by banning smoking in public places, as Egypt has done recently in response to the efforts exerted by the former chairman of the Medical Association, Dr Hamdy al-Sayed. Governments are also forcing tobacco producers to clearly state on their products the health hazards of smoking, so that a smoker may reconsider smoking, and urge others to abstain from it, and, by so doing, become a good example in social reform for which he would be rewarded by God. Such a person will also receive, according to the Prophet PBUH, the reward for a good action undertaken by those who follow his example, without minimizing their own reward. Now that medical specialists have settled the matter, the religious ruling on smoking ranges from haram to reprehensible, bordering on haram for those who start smoking.

I completelly agree with your blog TOBACCO CONTROL-ITS OUR DUTY! This is so. This problem hurts those people who wish the best to others. Of course this concerns a lot of us. And I think the best way of spreading this problem, control it and fight with it is to start within everybody's family.

I completelly agree with your blog TOBACCO CONTROL-ITS OUR DUTY! This is so. This problem hurts those people who wish the best to others. Of course this concerns a lot of us. And I think the best way of spreading this problem, control it and fight with it is to start within everybody's family.

JazakAllah! for contributing to this forum sister.your advice is surely helpfull and you seem to have a lot of knowledge in this subject,Masha Allah!. And it is very important to first have a good intention to save humanity from this grave disaster of tobacco when your working as an activist in this cause.And it should be done with wisdom and preached in the best of ways and means. The approach should be such that we are working for the good of the people to please only Almighty Allah...To accept or reject is ones individual choice...

JazakAllah! for contributing to this forum sister.your advice is surely helpfull and you seem to have a lot of knowledge in this subject,Masha Allah!. And it is very important to first have a good intention to save humanity from this grave disaster of tobacco when your working as an activist in this cause.And it should be done with wisdom and preached in the best of ways and means. The approach should be such that we are working for the good of the people to please only Almighty Allah...To accept or reject is ones individual choice...

This is another thing bout harmful smoking but its shisha.
For our information only:
PARIS, Oct 31, 2007 (AFP) - Smoking a shisha gives off as much carbon monoxide as 15 to 52 cigarettes and as much tar as 27 to 102 cigarettes, said a French national laboratory report cited by the French anti-tobacco agency (OFT).
The report confirms that "shisha is a major source of air pollution in closed and covered areas," OFT said in a statement. If comparing the data to regular cigarette smoke, one shisha corresponds to an average of around 70 drags on a cigarette, OFT President Bertrand Dautzenberg said.
The tests were conducted by Laboratoire National d'Essais (LNE) on three types of shisha: shisha with self-lighting carbon used in small amounts, self-lighting carbon used in large amounts, and natural carbon shisha used in small volumes.
The laboratory used the three parameters that are measured when analysing smoke on a packet of cigarettes: the amount of tar, nicotine, and carbon monoxide.
For 70 liters (16 gallons) of smoke produced by the shisha, the small amount self lighting carbon tar results were measured at 319 milligrams, 32 times the legal European limit for a cigarette, while the large amount self-lighting carbon measured at 266 milligrams, 27 times the cigarette limit, and the natural carbon measured at 1,023 milligrams, a whopping 102 times more than a cigarette.
Carbon monoxide measurements fared badly as well, as tests indicated that the carbon measurements from the three types of shisha came to 17 times the normal cigarette limit, 15 times, and 52 times the limit.
The self-lighting carbon in both large and small amounts for nicotine measured about one cigarette per shisha, while the natural carbon was the nicotine equivalent of smoking six cigarettes.
France's hookah-pipe bars pleaded to be spared from a ban on smoking in cafes and restaurants which comes into force on January 1, hoping for an arrangement like the one reached in Quebec, where hookah-pipe bars were spared from a smoking ban adopted last year for cultural reasons.
Tea shops offering the Oriental-style water pipes, used for smoking herbal fruits and tobacco, have become popular in France since 2000 as the trend caught on in the country's North African community and beyond.
Some 200 bars, half of them in Paris, now serve an estimated one million customers each year, according to the Union of Hookah-Pipe Professionals (UPN).

This is another thing bout harmful smoking but its shisha. For our information only: PARIS, Oct 31, 2007 (AFP) - Smoking a shisha gives off as much carbon monoxide as 15 to 52 cigarettes and as much tar as 27 to 102 cigarettes, said a French national laboratory report cited by the French anti-tobacco agency (OFT). The report confirms that "shisha is a major source of air pollution in closed and covered areas," OFT said in a statement. If comparing the data to regular cigarette smoke, one shisha corresponds to an average of around 70 drags on a cigarette, OFT President Bertrand Dautzenberg said. The tests were conducted by Laboratoire National d'Essais (LNE) on three types of shisha: shisha with self-lighting carbon used in small amounts, self-lighting carbon used in large amounts, and natural carbon shisha used in small volumes. The laboratory used the three parameters that are measured when analysing smoke on a packet of cigarettes: the amount of tar, nicotine, and carbon monoxide. For 70 liters (16 gallons) of smoke produced by the shisha, the small amount self lighting carbon tar results were measured at 319 milligrams, 32 times the legal European limit for a cigarette, while the large amount self-lighting carbon measured at 266 milligrams, 27 times the cigarette limit, and the natural carbon measured at 1,023 milligrams, a whopping 102 times more than a cigarette. Carbon monoxide measurements fared badly as well, as tests indicated that the carbon measurements from the three types of shisha came to 17 times the normal cigarette limit, 15 times, and 52 times the limit. The self-lighting carbon in both large and small amounts for nicotine measured about one cigarette per shisha, while the natural carbon was the nicotine equivalent of smoking six cigarettes. France's hookah-pipe bars pleaded to be spared from a ban on smoking in cafes and restaurants which comes into force on January 1, hoping for an arrangement like the one reached in Quebec, where hookah-pipe bars were spared from a smoking ban adopted last year for cultural reasons. Tea shops offering the Oriental-style water pipes, used for smoking herbal fruits and tobacco, have become popular in France since 2000 as the trend caught on in the country's North African community and beyond. Some 200 bars, half of them in Paris, now serve an estimated one million customers each year, according to the Union of Hookah-Pipe Professionals (UPN).

Assalammualaikum all
You guys might have the best strategy to educate people on the bad things and the haram of smoking but i would like to advise that you guys to must also know the way to approach them which i felt thats the most important thing before distributing the speech or educating them. Yes as much as possible all of us want to do good deeds by educating them that smoking is haram but at end of the day, you guys must also know how to approach them the best way by not hitting on their sensitivity coz thats also sinful if they feel hurt. Why i am saying this because i watched a muslim movie in indonesia pertaining about 'wali songo'- its about 9 holy muslim people that spread islam in indonesia way back in those years. i am inspired by one wali coz hes the only one that approached people the best way without hitting their sensitivity of religion,race, culture and personal feeling.
Though its only about educating them on cigarettes that is haram, we don't know which part of our saying/conversation by conveying the message will hurt them.
But i pray success to you guys.
Maybe before educating them about the haram on cigarettes, you can get to know them first, their way of life or their problems just like being a consultant then maybe putting some islamic view in life pertaining to the cigarrette. This maybe slow process because i know as much as possible you guys want to do it in a mega numbers but i hope my advise does help as a muslim.
May Allah bless us always. Amin

Assalammualaikum all You guys might have the best strategy to educate people on the bad things and the haram of smoking but i would like to advise that you guys to must also know the way to approach them which i felt thats the most important thing before distributing the speech or educating them. Yes as much as possible all of us want to do good deeds by educating them that smoking is haram but at end of the day, you guys must also know how to approach them the best way by not hitting on their sensitivity coz thats also sinful if they feel hurt. Why i am saying this because i watched a muslim movie in indonesia pertaining about 'wali songo'- its about 9 holy muslim people that spread islam in indonesia way back in those years. i am inspired by one wali coz hes the only one that approached people the best way without hitting their sensitivity of religion,race, culture and personal feeling. Though its only about educating them on cigarettes that is haram, we don't know which part of our saying/conversation by conveying the message will hurt them. But i pray success to you guys. Maybe before educating them about the haram on cigarettes, you can get to know them first, their way of life or their problems just like being a consultant then maybe putting some islamic view in life pertaining to the cigarrette. This maybe slow process because i know as much as possible you guys want to do it in a mega numbers but i hope my advise does help as a muslim. May Allah bless us always. Amin

thanx fr ur interest. The first step is to educate from where the habit starts...Schools and colleges...Second step is to use our religious network of mosques to educate our Ummah.
Allama Yousuf Al Qardawi in his book Halal and Haram states that buying and selling and using tobacco is haram...
Firstly educate and arm yourself by knowledge of the hazards of tobbaco and how your going to convince ppl...You can get a lot of material on the net.

thanx fr ur interest. The first step is to educate from where the habit starts...Schools and colleges...Second step is to use our religious network of mosques to educate our Ummah. Allama Yousuf Al Qardawi in his book Halal and Haram states that buying and selling and using tobacco is haram... Firstly educate and arm yourself by knowledge of the hazards of tobbaco and how your going to convince ppl...You can get a lot of material on the net.